Splinters
by Riley Alicia
Summary: Before he’d gone to England. Before I had moved in and taken his place. Before we were standing here staring awkwardly at each other, wondering what in the hell we were supposed to say.
1. The Art of Reconnecting

A/N: After watching the final episode / TV movie "Chasing Zoey" I felt happy (Chase & Zoey) and disappointed at the same time. What happened to James? I mean, it wasn't like he was some random fling of Zoey's; they dated longer than she's been with anyone else. And yet the writers did his character no justice in that ep. So this is my little tribute to James, because I'm weird like that.

P.S. Also, I've looked all over and I can't find any certain facts as to what grade Zoey & Co. are in during CZ but I don't think they could be seniors yet and I've never heard of a prom for sophomores, so I'm going to assume it was their junior prom and they were in 11th grade, which makes them seniors in my story. If you have proof (not speculation) that they were in a different grade, please leave me the link, otherwise it's staying this way.

Summary: James Garrett returns for his senior year at PCA following his break-up with Zoey. How will he handle the break-up, senior year, and an awkward friendship with his new roommate, Chase Matthews, all at the same time?

Splinters

_Four months. She gave me four months. I suppose I don't really have anything to complain about. I mean, how often does a guy get lucky like I did? I transfer to an amazing new boarding school and by the end of my first week I'm dating the best-looking girl on campus. That sort of thing just doesn't happen every day._

_And the fact that she put up with me for four months is a miracle in and of itself. I was sure I wouldn't be able to hold onto her for very long. Yet somehow I managed to make it through the entire semester._

_I guess more than anything, I'm angry with myself. I should have seen it coming sooner. I was caught off guard, and it hurt. That necklace I gave her wasn't just for the hell of it, you know. I meant it. And even though it's been four months since we broke up, four glorious months of Zoey-free summer, I still mean it. _

_Monday. Today is the first day of senior year at PCA, and instead of coming back triumphant, as Zoey's boyfriend, I'm coming back with my tail between my legs, as Zoey's ex. I wonder who my roommates will be. Obviously, the almighty Chase will return to his spot as Logan and Michael's roommate, which puts me out of a bed. I hope they don't stick me back in 3A again. Michael was right; that room _is _jank._

_Well, for now I have to go. We're pulling into the parking lot. Go Stingrays._

Chapter 1: The Art of Reconnecting

I stepped out of my parents' car and into the bright California sunshine. Three months ago I had left this place as quickly and quietly as possible, and I dreaded showing my face again. What would everyone think? How would I explain leaving like I did?

I was pulling my bags out of the trunk when I heard someone calling my name.

"Hey, James!" Glancing back over my shoulder, I saw Michael Barrett heading my way. I sighed. No time like the present, right?

"Hey, Michael," I replied, hoisting my last suitcase out of the car. He held out his hand and I was confused. Looking hurt, he pulled it back.

"What's wrong with you?" He asked. I shook my head.

"Uh, nothing, sorry." Michael shrugged and smiled. He was pretty easy-going most of the time and didn't stay upset for long.

"So, how was your summer?" He asked, helping me gather my suitcases. I responded with a Look and he nodded.

"Right… sorry." Seriously, was I supposed to respond positively? I went from the prospect of spending the entire summer with a beautiful girl – my _girlfriend _– in Maui to being a dateless loser sitting around at home. I didn't even have my uncle's hardware store to keep my mind off of things.

"It's cool. Well, I guess I'll see you in class and stuff. I should go get my room assignment." He stared at me.

"What are you talking about? Are you not rooming with us this year?" Now it was my turn to stare.

"I, uh – well, I assumed your room would be full this year." Michael suckered punched me in the shoulder and I glared at him. "What was that for?"

"Dude, it's your room, too. Come on, man, just because Chase is back at PCA doesn't mean we're gonna turn you out or something!" He shook his head. "I mean, we are friends, aren't we?" I nodded quickly.

"Of course! I just – I mean you and Chase were friends first, so I understand if-"

"If what? If I can't be friends with both of you? Give me more credit than that! Look, just take your stuff to the dorm, I'll meet you there. And quit being such a girl about this!" He jogged off and I was stunned.

"I'm not a girl!" I hollered after him, causing two ninth grade girls to stare and giggle as they passed. "Well, I'm not!" I barked at them and they hurried away.

"Why are you yelling at strangers?" I turned to see Lola standing next to my pile of bags. Grinning, she gave me a bear hug, but I was too startled to react normally. Was I in some sort of twilight zone? This was Zoey's best girl friend. "What's wrong?" She asked, sensing my hesitation and pulling away.

"I…" I trailed off, unsure of what to say. "I didn't expect such an enthusiastic greeting, I guess." She looked confused.

"Why not? I haven't seen you in forever! Why wouldn't I be enthusiastic?" I shrugged, and understanding dawned on her features. Before I could react, she smacked my sore shoulder.

"Ouch!" I rubbed it. "Why does everyone keep hitting me?" I complained. She glared at me.

"Because you're being stupid and someone has to knock some sense into you!" She shook her head. "Honestly, did you think we were just going to stop talking to you? You and Zoey broke up, cool, whatever. That's between you and her. It doesn't change our friendship." She looked sad. "Does it?" I shook my head frantically.

"No! I mean, not on my part, I was just… worried, I guess." She grinned.

"Well don't be. You're still my buddy." Grinning back, I hugged her so excitedly that I lifted her feet off of the ground.

"Thanks, Lola. You rock. Hey, you want to get some sushi later? I haven't had good sushi all summer!" She nodded.

"Definitely. I'll stop by your dorm before dinner." I picked up my bags.

"Awesome. I'll see you later! And say hi to Vince for me," I added over my shoulder.

The closer I got to my old dorm, the less excited I felt, and the more my stomach churned. When was I going to have to see Zoey? Would she be alone first or would I have to see her and meet this Chase guy at the same time? I didn't think I could handle that.

I reached the door and stared at it. Michael was supposed to be in there, and I hoped he would be. Logan and I got along okay in the end, but he still wasn't my favorite person and I definitely wasn't his. I pushed the door open with my shoulder and backed inside, dragging my things with me. The door shut as soon as I cleared it and I turned to find the room empty of Michael and Logan, but not empty altogether.


	2. Fraternizing With the Enemy

Splinters

Chapter Two: Fraternizing With the Enemy

I couldn't help it. I just stood and stared at the bushy-haired guy standing in front of me. This was definitely not the way I wanted to start my senior year at PCA. He stared right back, and there was something akin to worry in his eyes. When I finally managed to look away, I realized that where there had been a single bed last year, there was now a second bunk bed. The original bunk beds were already piled with Michael and Logan's things, and Chase and I glanced at each other and then at the bed.

"Top or bottom?" He asked, and I started.

"What? Oh, um, it doesn't matter. Either one." He shrugged.

"Well, I always had to sleep on the bottom before, so I wouldn't mind taking the top." Before. Before he'd gone to England. Before I had moved in and taken his place. Before we were standing here staring awkwardly at each other, wondering what in the hell we were supposed to say.

"Sure, I'll take the bottom." To punctuate this statement I dumped my belongings onto the bottom bed and opened my large suitcase. Chase's things were piled in the corner by the door and I noticed a set of golf clubs and a boogie board. Did we have to have things in common? I loved golf, and who doesn't like boogie boarding? It would be so much easier to hate this guy if we have nothing to make us like each other.

"So, listen," he said, and I straightened up, banging my head on the bed frame. I cursed angrily. "Wow, you okay?" He asked, sounding sincerely concerned. I sat down, feeling slightly dizzy.

"Yeah, I'm good. What were you saying?" He sat in a chair and leaned forward, his hands on his knees.

"Just that I know this is weird as hell and I don't want to make it any weirder. But you're the one stuck in an impossible situation and I get that. So however you want to handle this is cool with me – uh, other than sticking me on a plane and shipping me back to England." I couldn't help but laugh a little at that. It had been my first thought when I had heard about him coming back. "But anyway, if you want us to hate each other and be enemies and all of that, I understand. I don't think I'll hate you, but I can pretend for your sake."

"I don't hate you. I want to, believe me," I joked. He laughed.

"Yeah, I don't really blame you. I'd hate me, too." He ran a hand through his hair. "So, umm, should we like beat each other up or wrestle or something? I'm starting to feel like a girl. I need to do something manly to rescue my testosterone from this feelings-fest we're having here." I stood and he followed.

"We could box or something," I offered mischievously and he gave me a mock glare. "C'mon," I taunted jokingly as the door opened. "You wanna box?" Chase started to laugh, but before we could say anything else, Michael and Logan had tackled us to the floor.

"All right now, we're not letting you up until you work all of this crap out," Logan said.

"Yeah!" Michael added. "Violence is not the answer!" I struggled out of Michael's grip.

"Get off!" I exclaimed. "What is wrong with you two?" Chase pushed Logan off, chuckling.

"I think they were trying to break up our fight," he said. I looked from him to Michael to Logan… and started to laugh.

"Oh, man, you two are hilarious," I choked out. "We were joking, we weren't really going to box!" Chase gave me a sideways glance.

"Or were we?" He joked, and Michael and Logan looked at each other in confusion.

"So, you two are cool?" Logan asked. We nodded.

"And you're not going to beat the crap out of each other?" Michael added.

"No!" Chase replied. "Geez, do you guys really think we're that immature?"

"Sorry!" Michael said again. "Anyway, when did you get here, Chase?"

"About an hour ago. I spent the first half of it in the housing department, thinking I was out of a dorm." He winked at me and I folded my arms.

"You thought _you_ were out of a dorm?" I demanded. "I thought I was going to have to get new friends." Logan rolled his eyes.

"That's a stupid thing to think," he said. "I don't even like Chase, why would I stop being your friend?" Chase glared at him.

"Thanks, Logan. That means a lot, coming from you," I joked. He shrugged and Chase shook his head.

"It's nice to see you, too, Logan." He grabbed his backpack from the desk. "You like sushi, James?" I nodded. "Good, because I really want some right now. Sushi in England is awful." I grabbed my bag and we headed out into the hall.

"Wait! We're coming too!" Michael and Logan came hurrying after us. We left the building and started walking toward the restaurant.

"Oh, wait," I said. "I promised I'd have sushi with Lola."

"Then we'll just invite her along," Chase said.

"When did you see Lola?" Michael asked.

"After I saw you. She hit me in the same spot, by the way," I complained, and Michael shrugged.

"You deserved it." I rolled my eyes at him as we headed toward the girls' dorm. Then, it hit me. Lola was Zoey's room mate. If we went to see Lola… I stopped walking and Chase noticed.

"You know what, why don't I go get her and I'll meet you guys there," he offered. I was sure he knew I wasn't ready to see him and Zoey together.

"Actually, I'll go," I said. "Alone, I mean. If you don't mind, Chase," I added, and he shrugged.

"Sure. We'll meet you at Sushi Rox." I nodded and jogged off toward the girls' hall.

Five minutes later I was knocking on the door to room 101. My stomach was turning again, but I tried to ignore it. The door popped open and Zoey's face appeared.

"James." She looked surprised, but not upset. Not pleased, either, but I wasn't that naïve.

"Hey. Umm, is Lola in here?" She nodded and opened the door the rest of the way. Quinn and Lola were unpacking their things and I tentatively stepped into the room.

"James!" Quinn exclaimed when she saw me. She came over and hugged me, causing Zoey to frown slightly. I knew that frown could mean a million different things, but I didn't even want to try to decipher it. There was nothing but heartache down that road.

"Hey, Quinn. Blow anything up this summer?" She gave me a mock glare, her hands on her hips. After a few seconds, she relaxed her pose.

"Okay, yes," she admitted, "but it was purely intentional."

"Sure it was," I said with a grin. "Hey, Lola, the guys want to grab some sushi but I told them I'd already promised you that honor. You in early or you wanna take a rain check?" She looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Hmmm… I really should finish unpacking… but I haven't had Sushi Rox in so long…" She set her makeup case on the dresser. "Sure, I'll come," she said finally.

"Cool!" I replied. Hating myself for it but knowing it was necessary, I added, "Quinn, Zoey? You in?" Quinn shook her head.

"Tell Logan I'll meet him later. If I don't get this plasma into a refrigerated container it could be disastrous." I nodded, feeling slightly scared.

"Sure… Zoe?" I hadn't meant to say her name that way, I knew it was too personal, but come on, she was my girlfriend for four months! What do you expect? Her eyes clouded for a moment and she shook her head. I nodded, not sure what to say.

"Ready?" Lola asked. I nodded again. As we were walking out the door, Zoey called out, "Wait." She caught up with us. "James, do – do you think I could talk to you? Privately?" I shrugged.

"Sure. Why not?" Lola looked between the two of us and said, "I'll just wait in the lounge for you, James. Quinn, can you come help me?" Quinn furrowed her brow.

"Help you with what?" She asked. Lola glared at her.

"Just come help me!" She repeated, and Quinn hurried after her, bewildered. When they were gone, Zoey sat down on her bed and patted the spot next to her. I raised one eyebrow and sat in the desk chair instead. She sighed.

"You don't have to do that." I nodded.

"Yes, I do. I don't feel comfortable sitting that close to you, sorry." I looked out the window. "Now that I've met Chase, I-"

"You met Chase?" She interrupted.

"Yeah. We're sharing a dorm, we had to meet eventually." She stared, her mouth open. Finally closing it, she said, "What did I do to deserve this?" under her breath. I glared at her.

"You? What about me? You didn't spend the entire summer afraid that you were going to come back with no dorm to live in and no friends!" I sighed. "Look, I'm not mad and I don't hate you." _Far from it_, I thought inwardly. "But this whole Chase thing is going to be hard. He seems like a cool guy and I like him so far, but that doesn't mean it isn't still weird." She nodded.

"It is for me, too. Everything happened so fast last semester. I- I just wanted to let you know that we didn't break up because of Chase. I do like you, but it just wasn't working. Then Chase came after and, well…" She trailed off, her cheeks pink.

"I get it, Zoey, it's all right. You don't have to explain or justify. Break-ups happen; I mean, look at Quinn and Mark. And they got over it well enough. They're even friends now. Hopefully we can do that." She smiled.

"I'd like that." I stood.

"I'd better get going, they're waiting for me. I'll see you around campus, then?"

"Sure." I left the room feeling somewhere between satisfied and melancholy. I just hoped that this creepy triangle I was stuck in would die at some point… and that it wouldn't take me with it.


	3. Civilized Conversation

Splinters

Chapter 3: Civilized Conversation

I got through the first week of classes in one piece, but I was still having a hard time. I had two classes with Chase and one with Zoey, but none with the two of them together. I had a different lunch period, with Logan and Quinn, so by some miracle I had been able to avoid seeing them together yet. I knew this wouldn't last; it was bound to happen eventually. So I decided that it would be best to set it up so that I could be prepared for it, rather than having it sprang on me.

"Hey, Michael," I said on Friday morning as we were getting ready for class. Chase and Logan were showering and the room was blessedly quiet. "We should do something fun tonight. It's only the first week of classes and I'm already feeling gloomy." Michael gave me a knowing look.

"That sounds cool. Just us or the whole gang?" I was still a little surprised at being included "the gang" but I was no longer questioning my good fortune.

"The whole gang. Maybe go to the beach or something and cling to the last little bits of summer before they fade away." He laughed as Chase entered the room.

"Quit being so dramatic," he teased. "Summer's not lost forever."

"Who said summer is lost forever?" Chase demanded. "Summer never ends at PCA."

"It doesn't?" I asked. Chase looked to Michael.

"You never showed him?" He asked. Michael shook his head.

"We didn't get a chance to last year."

"Well then I think we should make up for it tonight," Chase replied.

"Umm, could one of you tell me what the heck you're talking about?" I broke in. Chase grinned.

"Oh, you just wait," he replied. "It's the experience of a lifetime."

I barely made it through my classes, I was so anxious for Chase's surprise. I knew part of him was being nice out of pity, since he felt he stole my girlfriend. But from what I was learning, I had sort of stolen her from him in the first place. I had never known that Chase had told Zoey how he felt before I came along. I didn't know that Zoey had been in England or that she and Chase had left their respective countries to be with each other, leaving Chase stuck in England for a semester. And no one had bothered to tell me, until now, that they had actually dated briefly, long distance, mere weeks before I had moved to PCA.

I was learning to accept these things and the fact that Zoey and Chase were happy together. It sucked, but that was a fact of life, unfortunately. And Chase wasn't so bad to have as a friend. He was really good with biology, which helped when my Anatomy class proved to be a little more challenging than I had anticipated.

"James!" Zoey caught up with me just outside calculus. "Wanna walk to English with me?" She was smiling tentatively and I couldn't refuse. She was trying really hard at this whole "just friends" thing and I was cooperating to my best extent.

"Sure. Where'd you come from?"

"Advanced Physics. Don't ask me what possessed me to take that class. Regular physics was hard enough!" I smiled and nodded but didn't respond. We were standing in the math building and the science building was halfway across campus. Our English class was between the two.

"Hey, maybe you'll get to ride another roller coaster," I said finally. She grinned.

"If only. That was so much fun. You should drop by the class and mention it to my teacher." Again, I chose not to respond, only nodding and smiling. If this was any other girl, I would have assumed she was flirting with me. But not this girl. Not Zoey.

"Why aren't you taking AP? I thought you had to have one more science credit?" She continued when I remained silent. I nodded.

"I do. I decided to take Anatomy. I've been thinking about going to medical school." She stared at me in awe.

"Really? Med school? That's awesome, James!" She furrowed her brow. "Isn't Anatomy like ridiculously hard?" She asked. I shrugged.

"It's definitely challenging, but I'm getting through. Chase has been a big help." I couldn't resist the opportunity to not only remind her of her boyfriend but to also to remind her that he and I were somewhat friends. Her expression darkened and she nodded.

"Chase is really good with biology," she agreed. I fiddled with my backpack strap, avoiding her searching gaze. "Can I ask you something?" She spoke finally, and I looked up at her in surprise.

"You just did," I joked, hoping to keep the mood light. She gave me an exasperated look and ignored my comment.

"Are you really okay with all of this? I mean I know it was hard enough for you coming back knowing about Chase and me, but to be stuck in a dorm with him, sharing friends with him? I mean, Michael just set it all up without ever asking you if you wanted that." She looked seriously concerned and I couldn't help but smile.

"Honestly, it was weird as all hell at first, but I'm okay with it now. In fact, I'm glad Michael did that, because I probably would have just moved into a different dorm and alienated myself from everyone. This 

way I was forced to deal with it and I'm glad I did. Besides, Chase is a way better roommate than Michael and Logan. And he's not bad as a friend either." She nodded solemnly.

"Good. Because I was really worried about you and I wondered if Michael ever really considered how you would feel about all of it. I just wanted to make sure that, you know, you were okay." She was blushing and I felt nervous all of a sudden. Why was she acting this way? Was this really how you act around and ex that you still want to be friends with? What would Chase think?

"Really, Zoey, I'm fine. I promise. I'm starting to get used to this whole 'friends' situation. And I'm really glad I didn't have to find new friends." She shook her head.

"Lola told me she hit you for saying that."

I nodded. "After Michael hit me in the same spot. It's still sore!" She giggled as we reached our English classroom. Slipping inside, she seated herself right next to me. She had been sitting with Lisa, Michael's girlfriend, all week, and I was surprised she would sit with me until I noticed Lisa's seat was empty. Zoey pulled out her folder and textbook and began flipping through the folder for her homework.

Sighing, I did the same as the bell rang. Lisa's seat stayed empty and I nodded inwardly. So that was why. Larry Manford, a somewhat dorky kid, had been sitting next to me all week, but when he saw Zoey, he seated himself in Lisa's empty chair. I bit my lip, feeling angry. Zoey had no right to sit there. I wasn't her boyfriend, I was barely her friend, and now poor Larry would have to sit alone all period. I could feel Zoey watching me but I refused to look over at her. Instead, I focused my attention on the teacher.

When the class ended, I grabbed my things and rushed out of the room. I had just made it into the warmth of the late morning sun when Zoey caught up with me.

"James!" I kept walking, but she kept pace with me, finally grabbing me by the arm to stop me. "James, would you stop for a minute?"

I jerked my arm out of her grip and glared at her. "Why? So you can confuse me some more?" I snapped. Tears sprang to her eyes. "This isn't fair, Zoey, at all. Us being friends doesn't mean you still treat me the same but without the making out, ok? You wouldn't act that way with Lola or Logan or Michael and you shouldn't act that way with me. And I'm not your fill-in for when you don't have a table buddy, either. If you want to sit with me, sit with me, but don't use me to make up for Lisa being gone. You do realize you took someone else's usual seat?" The tears were threatening to spill over and she blinked them back furiously, but I wasn't done.

"I'm trying, Zoe. I'm trying to do this friend thing but it's hard for me. And you're not making it any easier." I drew a ragged breath. "I'm sorry I got so mad, but I can't handle this, okay? You're going to have to figure out how to treat me as a friend, just like all of your other friends, or else I can't do this…." I trailed off. One single tear trailed down her cheek, and without thinking, I reached out and wiped it away. She turned her head away and I cursed myself under my breath.

"I guess we both need to figure out how this works," she whispered to her shoes. I had the urge to tip her chin up and make her look at me, but I resisted. Too much contact was bad for us.

After a few minutes, she looked up, smiling sadly. "I'm sorry. I guess I just don't know how to act around you. We weren't ever really friends, you know? We barely knew each other when we started dating. I want to be friends, I want this to work but I might need your help. And a little patience would be nice, too," she teased softly, and I smiled.

"I'll do my best," I promised.

"What's all this?" Logan's voice broke into the conversation. "Why are you two just standing there smiling at each other?" I rolled my eyes and Zoey glared at him.

"In case you didn't realize, Logan, we were having a private conversation," she replied haughtily. "So if you don't mind…" He crossed his arms.

"I do mind. What could you two possibly be having a private conversation about?" His eyes narrowed. "Unless…" I shoved him out of the away.

"Get out of here, Logan, you know we would never do that. We were just talking and now, I'm just leaving to go to class. I'll see you later, Zoey," I added, and she nodded, still glaring at Logan. She turned and marched away before I was out of sight.

Walking toward the gym for P.E., I recognized a head of bushy hair walking in front of me. "Chase!" I hollered, jogging to catch up with him. He looked around, smiling when he saw me.

"What up?" He asked, holding his hand out for a slap. I complied and fell into step beside him.

"I'm just heading to P.E., unfortunately," I replied. He laughed.

"Have fun. Coach Keller is still a nightmare."

I nodded, running a hand through my hair. It was now or never. "Listen, Chase, I just want to tell you the truth before Logan comes around cooking up trouble. Zoey and I were talking – well, arguing – just now and Logan went all Mr. Detective on us. Just in case he tries to make something out of it, I wanted to assure you that it was nothing, okay? We wouldn't do that."

"Do what?" Chase asked, bewildered and curious.

I sighed. "Whatever is going through Logan's mind. I don't know or want to know, but I'm sure it's something we would never do. You know Logan." He nodded.

"I do," he replied. He looked concerned. "What were you arguing about?" He asked. I shrugged.

"Something stupid. We're just… we're having a hard time with this friend thing, you know? It's even more awkward with me and Zoey than it is with you and me. But don't worry, we'll work it out." He looked thoughtful. "Chase?"

He shook out of it. "Sorry, I was just thinking. I think it's cool that you and Zoey are trying to be friends. My last girlfriend and I don't even speak to each other, at least not civilly. And if there's anything I can do to help, just let me know, okay?"

I smiled. "Sure. We appreciate you being so cool about this, too. I'm not sure I'd be so generous if I was in your shoes." He shrugged.

"No problem. Hey, here's my building. I'll see you back at the dorm, okay?" I nodded and he disappeared inside. I continued on my way to the gym.

Coach Keller was definitely still a nightmare and barked at us constantly as we ran laps around the track. I was in fairly decent shape so I kept up well, but some of the other students lagged well behind. Our assignment was five laps, three of which I had already finished. I was lapping other students easily until halfway through my fourth lap. I was about to pass a dark-haired girl when suddenly her ankle bobbled and she went down. There was no way for me to avoid her and I fell down on top of her. I quickly threw all of my weight to one side, hoping to avoid crushing her and somehow I managed to land next to her.

Pulling myself into a sitting position, I heard Coach Keller yelling at the other students to keep running. He was huffing and puffing his way toward us. I inspected myself; other than a bruise on my knee and a few scrapes, I was fine. I got to my feet and extended a hand to the girl, who had tears in her eyes.

"Are you all right?" I asked her. She shook her head, clutching her ankle. I helped her up and placed her arm around my shoulders to support her weight.

"Is everything okay?" Coach Keller had come within a foot of us but was still yelling.

"I think I sprained my ankle," she whimpered.

"I'll take her to the nurse," I offered. I felt somehow responsible, even though she had been the one to trip me. Coach Keller nodded.

"You're dismissed," he yelled, and I winced at the volume. "Class is nearly over anyway. It's about time for me to get myself some sushi." He pronounced it with a short vowel rather than the requisite long vowel, and I corrected him.

"It's 'sue'-shi, sir." He glared at me.

"I say suh-shi!" He hollered, and I nodded.

"Okay, okay, whatever." Desperate to get away from this crazy man, I helped the girl hobble off the track.

We had just made it out of sight of the track when she looked around, pulled her arm away, and stood flat on both feet. I stared at her.

"Classic trick," she explained. "Coach Keller's not bright enough to catch on."

"You mean you're not hurt? Was the fall fake, too?" I was a little angry. She laughed.

"Oh, calm down. Truthfully, the fall was real, and I'm sorry I took you down, too. But once I was down, I figured why the hell not get out of running while I'm at it?" I half-smiled.

"I see. So was I just a pawn in your scheme?" She shrugged.

"I don't know yet. Buy me a smoothie and I'll decide. I'm Rebecca, by the way," she added. I nodded. "And you're James."

I stared at her. "I'm not even going to ask how you know that. I don't want to hear the answer." She grinned.

"I don't blame you. Sorry I brought it up. Anyway, smoothie or are you going to slink back to your dorm alone?" I smiled back.

"Smoothie."


	4. One of Us

Splinters

Chapter 4: One of Us

"Are you serious?" Rebecca laughed. "You actually like running?" I shrugged.

"I don't mind it, honestly. I mean, I don't mind it as long as Coach Keller isn't breathing down my neck barking 'pick up the pace!' at me," I added. She was still laughing.

"I hate running. I can do it, I just hate it. It's so boring and sweaty and… ick." I smiled. "You know, you should join the track team. Those weirdos all love to run, too," she teased, and I pretended to be mad.

"Who are you calling a weirdo? You're the one who faked a sprained ankle to get out of P.E.," I reminded her. She did a cute little half-shrug, smirking.

"Hey, don't fault me for being a good actress." A good actress. Lola. The "group" had plans tonight. Jumping up, I glanced at my watch; it was already nearly four. "What's wrong?" Rebecca asked. I gave her an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry; I was supposed to meet my roommates half an hour ago." I was already throwing my bag over my shoulder. She stood, too, grabbing her bag by one strap.

"Hey, it's cool. Thanks for the smoothie, James. I'll see you back in hell Monday." I laughed at her frank description of Coach Keller's P.E. class. Then, to my surprise, she leaned up and kissed me on the cheek before walking away. I stood for several seconds watching her go, touching my hand to my cheek. Then, coming to my senses, I turned and bolted for my dorm.

"You're late," Michael complained as I came crashing into the dorm. "Isn't he, Chase?"

Chase nodded. "By thirty minutes, too. Tsk, tsk." I rolled my eyes at them.

"I got… held up," I offered by way of explanation. I wasn't quite ready to tell them about Rebecca yet. For one, I wasn't sure there was anything to tell, and for another, I didn't want to hear them laugh about my fall.

"Uh-huh," Chase replied. "No excuses! Get dressed, we've got five minutes before the bus leaves."

"Bus?" I repeated, feeling wary. Exactly what was this? We weren't supposed to leave campus.

Michael was grinning evilly. "Don't worry, compadre. We'll take good care of you." Logan entered the room at that moment and looked around.

"Are we ready or what?" he demanded. "The girls are waiting." I silently prayed that this would not be some sort of initiation ritual. I did not want to make an idiot of myself, especially not in front of Zoey.

"We're ready. We were just waiting on Jimmy-boy here." I finished getting dressed, suppressing the urge to make an obscene gesture at Michael for calling me Jimmy-boy. When I was done, they grabbed me by the arms and escorted me through the door.

The girls were waiting on the back side of the campus with Coco, their old dorm advisor, next to an old van that looked like it belonged to a pedophile. A man popped his head out of the window, but he seemed more like a lives-in-his-mother's-basement-and-reads-comic-books-all-day nerd than a pedophile, so I let go of the breath I was holding.

"Let's go, I haven't got all night," he called. Coco glared at him.

"Shut up, Carl! You're going to get these kids in trouble!" She hissed back. He growled in pulled his head back into the van. "You guys ready?" Coco asked us. We all nodded. "Now remember, if you get caught, I had _nothing_ to do with this." She winked and the girls piled into the van. I stared at Michael and Chase. Logan climbed in after Quinn. Michael shrugged and followed. Chase grinned.

"Come on now. Seriously, don't be scared or anything, this isn't some crazy hazing. Just something special that we have as a group of friends that we thought you might enjoy." He seemed genuinely sincere, and I felt much more confident as I climbed into the van.

Carl drove away all of that confidence, and by the time he pulled to a halt, I was ready to kiss the asphalt in gratitude for my life. I followed the others out of the van. Zoey leaned into the front seat to thank Carl.

"I'll be back at seven," he reminded her. We had to get back to PCA before dark. We waved and Carl peeled away.

"Where are we?" I asked, staring at a massive expanse of deserted beach.

"Well," Chase said. "A long time ago, when we were just small children-"

"We were thirteen, Chase," Zoey interrupted, rolling her eyes. Chase ignored her.

"-we missed the bus to the PCA beach party after exams, due to a certain wannabe scientist." He glanced at Quinn, who shrugged. "We took a cab, but _someone-_" he gave Logan a look here- "gave the driver the wrong directions and we ended up here."

"At first," Quinn said, taking of the story, "we had a completely awful time. None of our phones had reception, we were starving, we had no way home, and we knew eventually it would get cold, once night fell."

"But then," Michael piped in, "Quinn figured out a way to use a laptop to give one of the phones an emergency reception boost, and she managed to start a fire with Logan's mirror. Chase, Zoey, and Logan dug up worms to catch some fish, and…"

"And Dustin got stuck in the ocean with no pants." Zoey was smiling and they all laughed. "Anyway, we all decided it was the best beach party we'd ever been to and promised we would come back every year."

"So the next semester, they came back, only they brought me with them," Lola added. "We've been back every semester since, only last year you left too early, and we weren't able to take you with us."

"So, here we are," Logan finished. "Our very own PCA beach party, only without all the annoying people we don't like. This beach is always deserted so we have it all to ourselves."

"You know, this will be the last year we come here," Quinn said after a moment of silence. The realization seemed to hit everyone hard and smiles began drooping. I put my hands up.

"Come on, guys," I said. "You didn't bring me all the way out here to frown at me, did you?" My feeble attempt at a joke brought the smiles back, and Zoey dropped the bag she was carrying to the sand. Falling to her knees, she opened it, explaining, "We actually bring food with us now, you know, so we don't have to go fishing. And Lola discovered a pay phone down the street a little way." Chase sat down next to Zoey and opened his bag.

"We also bring an extra pair of shorts every year," he joked, pulling a small radio out of his bag. He plugged his iPod into it and the music started. Lola and Zoey stripped down to their suits and ran for the water. Logan was examining himself in his mirror and fussing with his hair. Quinn and Michael were dancing wildly.

I plopped down next to Chase. "This is great," I said, somewhat in awe. He grinned.

"Yeah, it really is. I hope there's some way for us to still come here after we graduate." I nodded. I, too, wondered what would happen after we graduated. Logan would run off to some east coast Ivy League school and probably become a business mogul; Zoey would end up in New York or Milan with a famous fashion line. Quinn, of course, would discover a cure for cancer and win a Nobel Prize. Michael would have a major record deal and Lola would be an actress. Chase… well, I wasn't sure.

"What are you going to do after graduation?" I asked him. He shrugged.

"I'm not sure yet. I'll go to college, of course, but I don't know what I want to study. Really the only thing I'm good at is being funny." I chuckled.

"And biology," I offered. He nodded.

"And biology," he repeated. I looked around; Quinn had joined Logan on the sand and Michael was stretched out on his back with his eyes closed.

"What now?" I asked him. He pulled his t-shirt off and stood.

"I don't know about you, but I think we should go try to drown Zoey and Lola." I stood, also taking off my shirt.

"I'm in." We raced into the water, tackling the girls and engaging in "girls against boys" water fights and wrestling matches. Soon, Michael, Logan, and Quinn joined us. Since it was four on three, we easily overpowered the girls and won.

We crawled out of the water an hour later, completely exhausted. I flopped down on the first bit of dry sand I could reach and lay there, breathing heavily. Lola collapsed next to me, resting her head on my stomach. Logan sat with Quinn leaning against him and Michael plopped down next to me, his knees bent and his feet flat. Zoey hurried up to her bag and brought it back down to us as Chase managed to crawl up next to Lola and me.

"Who wants some food?" She asked, pulling thermoses out and passing them around. We all raised our hands; I could barely lift mine and let it fall back down to my side. As we munched on the fruit and the sushi Zoey had managed to pack into her backpack – thanks to some high-tech device of Quinn's that kept the food chilled – I realized what was bothering me.

"Where are Lisa and Vince?" I asked. Everyone glanced at each other before Lola spoke up slowly.

"Well, Vince is my boyfriend, but that's really it. I mean, he hasn't been my boyfriend for very long." She paused. _Longer than Zoey and me, _I thought, and she smiled as though she could read me. "But really it's just because Vince isn't really one of us. He's my boyfriend but he's not our friend." Chase and Logan were nodding.

"Well, and the fact that he beat us up doesn't really help," Chase added. "I know he's changed and all, and I respect that, but I don't know that we could ever be great friends." I stared at him. He would rather be 'great friends' with me?

"Lisa's great and I love her to death," Michael added, "but like Lola said, she just not one of _us_." He emphasized the word and pointed around the circle. I couldn't hold back any longer.

"And I am?" I blurted out. They all looked shocked.

"Of course you are!" Lola replied. "Do I have to hit you again?" She demanded, poking me in the side. I flinched away from her, feigning fear. Zoey leaned over and touched my arm. Chase didn't even seem to care.

"Look, James, whatever happened between us doesn't matter when it comes to this group. You became a part of it last year, not just because we were dating, and you're going to remain one of us until you get sick of us and start looking for better friends." I grinned.

"I don't think I could find better friends," I admitted.

Logan shrugged, keeping one arm wrapped around Quinn. "We know," he replied, and everyone rolled their eyes, but we were all smiling.

"Thanks, guys. Seriously, I don't think you know how much this means to me." I swallowed a small lump in my throat. "So, uh, why don't we stop with this little love fest before one of the girls starts crying?" I joked, and Lola pushed me over.

"Let's build a sand castle!" Zoey said. "We didn't build one last year." Before anyone could protest, she squatted in the wet sand and started building.

"Zoe, I don't think we have time," Chase called. "It's six-thirty now." Zoey shrugged.

"So what?" She yelled back. "There are seven of us, we can do it." We looked around at each other, shrugged, and ran to join her.


	5. Luck Is Subjective

A/N: Sorry this took so long. I had a block with this story but then I watched "Surprise" and "Chase's Girlfriend" again, and I was re-inspired. I have a pretty distinctive personal opinion on the character of Rebecca, but I won't say what that is yet, so as not to give the ending away.

Also, I thought it had said somewhere in an episode where Chase was from, but I can't find that info online anywhere, so I made something up for Rebecca. if it's wrong, someone tell me!

Splinters

**Chapter 5: Luck Is Subjective**

By the time Carl came to get us, we were all covered in sand and had built the most intricate sand castle you could imagine. Zoey took several pictures of us standing in and around the castle before she allowed Logan and Chase to stomp it to bits. Lola and Quinn were halfway through burying me in the sand when the van pulled up to the curb and honked. They all ran up the beach and gathered their things.

"Hey!" I protested. "I'm buried here!" Lola and Quinn just grinned. Zoey came over with a smirk on her face.

"I dunno, maybe I should leave you there," she teased. I glared at her and Carl honked again. "On second thought, Dean Rivers would probably file a missing persons report." She helped dig me out. As I was freeing my legs, I caught her wrist and made her look at me.

"Thanks," I said. She smiled.

"I couldn't very well leave you out here to drown, could I?" She teased, but I shook my head.

"No, I mean for all of this. For sharing this with me, as a friend. It really does mean a lot." She ducked her head, blushing.

"Well, you are my friend, James. No matter what, I still care about you. You know that right?" She asked as we walked to the van, grabbing our bags along the way.

"I do now," I replied, and we climbed into the van.

--

On Sunday afternoon, I was lounging by the fountain, trying to concentrate on a calculus assignment when the shadow of a small person fell over me. Glancing up, I realized it was Rebecca. She grinned down at me.

"Studying?" She asked. I nodded, patting the grass next to me. She sat, pulling her knees to her chest. "What class?"

I made a face. "Calculus. Worst subject _ever_." She giggled.

"I know, I hate math. I prefer science. But not the 'weird inventions, mad scientist, creepy laboratory' science." She pronounced laboratory with the emphasis on the second syllable rather than the first, and I found it cute. "I like natural science, you know, how the earth is made up and how everything works, the miracle of the human being. That sort of thing." I was impressed.

"Me, too," I admitted. "I'm taking Anatomy this year; I'm planning on going to medical school." Her eyes widened.

"Wow," she managed. "What sort of medicine do you want to practice? Do you know yet?" I shrugged.

"I'm thinking maybe neurology. It's hard as all hell but I would really like to help find cures for mental disorders. There are so many people out there who have little or no control over their own mind without the aid of daily medicine. I want to find out what makes our brains act they way they do. It fascinates me." She smiled softly.

"That's amazing. I really admire someone who's willing to give their life to helping others." I blushed and ducked my head.

"What about you? What are you going to do?"

She picked up a twig and began digging in the grass with it. "I was thinking of marine biology. I just want to help animals. Helping people is great, but at least humans can defend themselves. There are so many animals out there that are unable to help themselves and are trampled by larger animals and by humans every day." Now it was my turn to be impressed.

"That is really cool. Helping someone, or something, smaller and weaker than you is probably the most rewarding experience ever." She nodded vigorously.

"Exactly. I want to help the dolphins." I stared at her. "What? Dolphins are beautiful, graceful, intelligent creatures! I want to help them."

"Help them what?" I teased, and she glared at me before pouting. She had a cute pout."All right, I'm only kidding. I think that's great. I mean, who doesn't like dolphins?" She smiled at that.

"I dunno, some crazy person?" I grinned and she laughed. I shifted my legs and my textbook fell from my lap. It landed oddly on the grass and she picked it up for me. As she did, a piece of paper slid out. I recognized it as one of my essays I was working on for a college application.

"Give that back," I joked, though I was mostly serious. Smiling mischievously, she held it out of my reach.

"I want to read it," she said. "Can I?" I shook my head. Not that essay.

"No, you most certainly cannot," I replied. I tried to smile but my voice was hard and somewhat cold.

"Okay, okay." She handed it back. "Sorry." I tucked it into my bag and zipped it closed. "I didn't mean to upset you," she said in a quiet voice, and I nodded.

"I didn't mean to get so upset, sorry. That's… it's just personal." She smiled.

"Hey, I get it. It's cool. Look, I've got to run, but I'll see you tomorrow, right?" I nodded.

"No falling down, though," I teased, and she stuck her tongue out at me.

"For all you know, I did that on purpose so I'd have an excuse to talk to you." With that, she walked away, and I stared, stunned, after her.

--

"James, get up!" I opened my eyes and lifted my head, wondering why it was so bright in our room.

"What time is it?" I groaned. Chase's face appeared over the side of the bunk bed.

"Dude, it's like seven-thirty. We're going to be late for class." I rolled over and shoved my book off of the bed. I'd been up all night studying.

"Great," I muttered, rolling out of the bed. I grabbed a towel and followed Chase through the door to the bathroom. Michael was getting dressed and Logan was drying his hair.

As we climbed into separate shower stalls, Chase called, "Hey, I was thinking about what you said, you know, about me being good about biology."

"Yeah?" I called back, working shampoo into my hair.

"Yeah, and I think I might want to do that, you know? I mean, I think I might want to work in bio-chemistry." I was impressed.

"Wow. Dude, that's really cool. I think you should go for it." I rinsed off and grabbed my towel, wrapping it around my waist.

"Yeah," Chase said again. "But I just wanted to tell you, because you put the thought in my head. I was really getting kind of worried about what I wanted to study, you know? So thanks." I nodded.

"No problem. All I did was say the truth, though. You're good at biology. Hell, I would be failing Anatomy right now without your help." He grinned.

"No you wouldn't! I only helped you a little." He was quiet for a moment. "The thing is, I sort of got an offer to a college. USC, to be exact." I stared at him.

"That's great!" I said. "Why aren't you more excited?" He shrugged.

"Well, it's just that USC is here in California."

I was confused. "Yeah. So?" He sighed.

"Which is, like, halfway across the world from New York," he explained, and I caught on.

Now what? What was I supposed to say to that? Hell, I would gladly give up USC to go to New York with Zoey. Did Chase not know how lucky he was?

"Have you talked to Zoey about this?" I asked, turning away so he wouldn't see my expression.

"Not yet. I just don't know if I want to bring it up with her yet. Not until I know more about what I want to do." I shrugged.

"Well, I think you should talk to her." I wanted to scream at him, shake him, but I kept my cool and when he nodded, looking thoughtful, I left the room.

--

Wednesday, my favorite day of the week, came quickly. As I walked from Calculus to English, I saw a familiar dark head. Sneaking up behind her, I covered her eyes with my hands.

"Guess who?" I teased. Rebecca placed her hands on her hips.

"I have absolutely no idea," she said in a mock-curious tone. "I wonder who it could be." Rolling my eyes, I turned her around. "Oh, James! I'm so shocked that it's you!" Grinning, I shrugged.

"What can I say? I'm just unidentifiable like that." She laughed. "What? I am!"

She surprised me by wrapping one arm around my waist and walking with me. "Sure you are." She smiled up at me. "So, what are you doing this weekend? Planning anymore secret rituals with your roommates?"

"No, I believe my schedule is completely open for this weekend. Why do you ask?" I feigned innocence. She pushed me away.

"Why do you think?" I smiled.

"I think I'd love to hang out with you this weekend, if you're up for it. Maybe we could catch a movie on campus?" She put her arm back around me, looking thrilled.

"I think I'm totally up for that." She looked at her watch. "And I think I'm going to be late for class." She kissed me on the cheek and ran off. I looked around and took a deep breath, trying to compose myself. I had a date for this weekend. Maybe I wouldn't have to spend the rest of the year in Chase's shadow, pining for Zoey.

"James?" Speak of the devil. I turned to face her.

"Hey, Zoey," I said. Her eyes were somewhat red and I wondered if she had talked to Chase.

"Who was that?" She asked, looking off to where Rebecca had disappeared behind one of the buildings.

"Just a girl from one of my classes," I replied. I wasn't ready to tell her about the date. I also wasn't entirely sure why she suddenly looked angry and suspicious. "Why?"

She shrugged, quickly adopting a fake smile. "No reason. Good for you, James." I stared at her.

"Is everything okay? You look upset." We started walking toward English, and I held the door open for her.

"Everything is fine," she replied. I raised one eyebrow.

"Are you sure about that?" I eyed her carefully. She looked away and nodded.

"Positive."

--

"Dude, what are you so hyped up about?" Michael demanded. "That's the second time you've changed clothes. What, do you have a date or something?" I didn't answer. It was Friday night and I was trying to get ready to meet Rebecca, but I was finding it difficult thanks to my nosey, obnoxious dorm mates.

Logan stared at me. "Oh my god, he does have a date! Look, I think he's blushing!" I turned away to hide my red face and sprayed on some cologne.

"Cologne?" Chase mused. "This girl must be a big deal."

"Okay, out with it," Logan demanded. "Who is she?"

"I don't know what you guys are talking about," I evaded. Michael rolled his eyes.

"Oh, come on, don't give us that. We're your friends, you can tell us!" I stared at him. Michael was my friend, but he had one of the biggest mouths on campus.

"Yeah, right. Look I'm going to be late for my non-date, so if you nosey jerks will excuse me…" Michael shrugged.

"Fine, don't tell us. We'll figure it out anyway." I shot him a glare.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do," Chase called, and I waved over my shoulder.

In all honesty, I didn't know why I was being so secretive. I didn't want to hear them make fun of me, partially.

I pondered the other reasons as I walked across the campus toward the movie theater, occasionally checking over my shoulder to be sure that my psycho roommates weren't following me. I wouldn't put it past them.

"Did I miss the part where we're seeing a spy movie?" I turned back to see Rebecca grinning at me. My jaw dropped.

"You look beautiful," I said in awe. She blushed. Her hair was curled and lay soft and shiny on her shoulders. Stepping up next to her, I took her hand. Smiling, she led the way up the steps and into the theater.

The movie, which Rebecca had picked, was a comedy that we both found hilarious. As we left the theater, laughing and quoting the funniest lines, I said, "Do you want to get some sushi?" She nodded.

"Sure, I'm starving." We headed to the sushi restaurant.

"So, what's your story, James Garrett?" She asked as we seated ourselves at one of the tables.

"What do you mean?" I asked, studying the menu. She shrugged.

"You know, where are you from, what's your sign, where do you see yourself in ten years?" She smiled to show she was joking and I smiled back.

"Well, I'm from southern California, I'm a Scorpio, and in ten years I plan to be rich." She laughed. "What about you?" She looked away, her eyes nervous.

"Oh, well, I'm from Nebraska," she replied. "I'm a Taurus, and in ten years I have no idea where I'll be."

"Well that's reassuring. I thought I was the only one who had no clue."

She smiled slightly. "Well, you should be okay, you seem to be a pretty lucky guy." I raised an eyebrow.

"How so?" I asked. She shrugged.

"Oh, I don't know. Your first week at a new boarding school and you're dating Zoey Brooks? Come on, even I know that's a big deal." I didn't answer right away.

"I wouldn't exactly call my experience with Zoey 'lucky'," I said slowly. I didn't want to talk about Zoey, but it seemed she did. "Considering she dumped me." She smiled wryly.

"Yeah, and instead of never speaking to you again, all of your friends are still your friends. Really, James, I'd say you're lucky." I shrugged.

"How do you know so much about it?" I hadn't told her the entire story, and yet she seemed to know all of the details. She blushed, looking nervous again.

"Oh, everyone knows all about Zoey's drama. As popular and as well-liked as she is, everyone knows everything about her. And of course it helps that the campus 'reporter' seems to have a huge crush on her." I laughed.

"Okay, that was actually funny. And sadly true." I sighed, sobering. "But really, I don't want to talk about Zoey, like at all." She nodded.

"I understand. I'm sorry I brought it up. I guess I do kind of envy you."

"Why is that?" I asked. She shrugged.

"Because your first week at PCA was probably completely awesome, and even though it ended badly for you, you still have friends. My first week at PCA was the worst week of my life, and I ended up with no friends because of it." I stared at her.

"What happened?" I had seen her around campus with other girls, so I knew she had friends, but maybe they weren't close. "You have friends now, don't you?" She nodded.

"My dorm mates are pretty cool, and I hang with a couple of girls from my classes. Maybe someday I'll tell you the whole sad story." She smiled. "But for now, I think we should change the subject."

"Hey, if you don't want to talk about it, I understand. I _really_ do. Let's talk about something more fun." She grinned mischievously.

"You mean, like what trick we're going to pull to get out of PE tomorrow?" She joked, and I laughed. We spent the rest of dinner coming up with outrageous plots to convince Coach Keller to let us out of class.

After dinner, I walked her back to her dorm. As we walked, she kept smiling.

"What's so funny?" I asked. She shrugged.

"I don't know. I guess this is just not what I expected."

"Is that a good or a bad thing?" I kept my tone light, but her comment actually worried me. Was I doing everything right? I had gone from being a sort of nerd to being Zoey's boyfriend here at PCA, so I wasn't used to going on random dates.

"No, it's a good thing. It's just a surprise." She paused for a moment, looking thoughtful. "It's like getting that present you really wanted for Christmas. You aren't really expecting it, but you're really glad you got it." I laughed.

"I've never heard it put that way," I teased. "So I'm like a Christmas present?" She blushed slightly, but smiled.

"Yeah, something like that. I'm just trying to say that I'm glad we did this. And that I'm really happy right now." She stopped walking as we reached the door to her dorm building.

"Well, I'm glad," I joked, but then grew serious. "I'm happy, too." Here it was, the part I'd been anxious for and dreading all at the same time: the big kiss. Or small one. Whatever.

"So, are you going to kiss me or should I go inside and cry myself to sleep?" She asked softly. Smiling, I shrugged, pretending to consider the options.

"Well, I-" before I could finish, she stepped forward and pressed her lips to mine. Stunned, I kissed her back, pulling her closer to me. When we finally pulled apart, her eyes were shining. I figured I had a similar expression.

"Wow," She whispered. I grinned.

"That was a good wow, right?" I asked. In lieu of a response, she kissed me again.


	6. Hitting The Brick Wall

**A/N:** Thanks again everyone for the reviews! They make me so happy. I get all excited and smile a lot and my husband looks at me like I'm crazy. Pshaw. He just doesn't understand. :)

Anyway, things are kind of coming to a head here, but then they kind of aren't. Just when I thought I had the plot completely figured out, it threw me for a loop. So things from here might be different than you expected. I hope you still like it.

**Underneath All Elsewhere**: Thanks! I really like Rebecca, too. She was an interesting character and one of the few that (OMG!Shock!Howcouldshe?!) didn't like Zoey, which I think should be important to the series. Obviously the writers/director felt differently. I think she got the shaft like James and so I'm giving them their moment here. :)

**Tina**: Thanks for your review, I'm glad you like it. I probably won't put a lot of Quogan in here. To be honest, I am not a Quogan fan. I recognize that the series put them together and respect that, but I don't really like them together. :shrugs: I hope you still read it!

Also, there's a little bit of language in this chapter, just for those who don't care for it. Nothing really serious, and it's only a couple of words, but I just thought I'd throw the warning out there! :) Happy Reading!

Splinters

**Chapter Six: Hitting the Brick Wall**

"So how did your date go?" Michael asked when I got back to the dorm.

"I'm guessing it went well, considering the goofy smile plastered on his face," Logan remarked. Flopping down on my bed, I chunked my pillow at him. Chase was lying in his bed, staring at the ceiling. Surprisingly, he didn't join Michael and Logan in the teasing, which they continued as I changed for bed.

"Oh well, maybe one day he'll trust us enough to tell us," Michael said.

Logan threw my pillow at him. "No one trusts you with anything, bigmouth," he joked. Glaring at him, Michael tossed the pillow at Chase.

"Hey, you alive up there?" Chase picked up the pillow and leaned over the railing, handing it down to me.

"Thanks," I said, a little bewildered by the odd expression on his face. He looked almost betrayed. "You okay?" He shrugged, still hanging upside down, studying me.

"Yeah," was his noncommittal reply.

"You sure? Did you talk to Zoey?" He nodded. "What'd she say?" He seemed surprised by my questions.

"Some really crazy stuff. I'm hoping it's not true." I stared at him.

"Huh? I'm not sure we're on the same page here." He shrugged, his features relaxing slightly.

"I guess not." He hoisted himself back over the railing and lay back down. _Weird_, I thought.

"Hey, James, answer one question," Logan called across the room. "On a scale of one to ten, how hot is she?" His answer was two pillows in the face: one from me and one from Chase.

--

"Wake up out there, Garrett!" Coach Keller screamed across the field. It was a week later and we were playing soccer, not one of my better sports. Unfortunately, Rebecca was actually kind of good. She smirked at me as she dribbled around me and scored.

My teammates groaned, glaring at me. I threw my hands in the air. "What? This sport is lame!" Rebecca rolled her eyes.

"Aw, don't be mad just because you suck," she teased. I glared at her.

"I don't suck!" She raised an eyebrow. "Okay, I suck. What kind of weirdo person likes a sport they suck at? Not me." She laughed.

"Hey, could you two quit flirting and get in position?" One of Rebecca's teammates yelled, folding his arms. Rebecca flipped her hair at him as she passed by.

"You're just jealous that I'm not flirting with you," she shot back. He rolled his eyes, but he continued to watch her until she turned around, at which time he pretended to be looking at the center of the field. I grinned at her as my team kicked off. Running up the field, I got into position, but no one passed me the ball. I didn't blame them, but I stayed up anyway and just hoped the ball would come to me.

Eventually it did, and I tried to dribble it, but my feet just weren't equipped to do two things at once. I stumbled a little over the ball and almost lost it, but I caught up with it and decided it would be best if I got rid of it. None of my teammates were open, so I looked toward the goal. I had a shot. The question was whether I could actually make the ball go in that direction.

Praying silently that this would work, I kicked the ball as hard as I could, aiming for the open part of the goal. To my everlasting shock, the goalie was out of position and wasn't able to stop it.

"It's about time," Rebecca joked as I walked past her. I stuck out my tongue. Coach Keller blew his whistle, calling us in.

"All right, that's the end of the period!" He bellowed, and we all winced. "Hit the showers!" We looked around at each other and shrugged. Rebecca slipped her arm through mine.

"Yeah, let's go hit the showers," she teased. I shook my head at her.

"Very funny. I don't want to get expelled." She grinned.

"You want to meet me at Sushi Rox after we shower?" She asked. I nodded enthusiastically.

"Definitely!" I rushed through my shower and met Rebecca outside the restaurant. She linked her arm through mine as I opened the door.

"James!" I turned in the direction of the voice and saw Logan jogging toward me.

"Hey, man, what's up?" I said. Logan grinned at me, but when he saw Rebecca, he stopped short.

"I –uh. Uh…" He glanced back and forth between us. I was utterly confused and looked to Rebecca for help. She shrugged.

"Hi, Logan," she said.

I stared at her. "How do you-"

"Um, James, could I talk to you for a minute?" Logan managed to choke out.

"What is going on?" I demanded. Rebecca glared at Logan.

"You can say it in front of me, you know! Go ahead, tell him."

"Somebody tell me something!" What the hell was going on here?

"Fine." Logan looked angry. "This chick is crazy." Rebecca's mouth dropped open and her eyes welled up with tears. I glared at Logan.

"Why the hell would you say something like that? Geez, Logan, I knew you were a jerk, but that's a little much." Logan shook his head.

"No, dude you don't understand." Rebecca stepped in front of him.

"I should have told you sooner, James, but I was afraid it would scare you away, and I was really starting to like you. I- uh- Chase and I used to date. Actually, he's the reason I came to PCA. We dated for about a week into the school year but I got a little jealous of his friendship with Zoey. I told him I didn't want them to be friends and he broke up with me."

"You left out the part where you threatened Zoey and then weeks later tried to embarrass her in front of the entire school by revealing a really embarrassing secret about her," Logan snapped. Rebecca blushed.

"Uh- yeah. That, too." I took a step back.

"Whoa." Rebecca grabbed my arm, her eyes pleading as the tears spilled over.

"Don't look at me like that. I really liked Chase and I came all the way out here to this stupid boarding school with him and then he dumped me, and I blamed Zoey." She choked up at the last word and 

was barely able to finish the rest. "What I did was wrong and stupid, I know. Please don't hold this against me. I haven't spoken to either one of them since." Logan rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, your sob story isn't going to work. Get out of here, freak." Rebecca looked at me, but I was too slow to respond. She turned and ran away.

I shoved Logan. "Speak for yourself!" I snapped. He held his hands up, eyes wide. Shooting one last glare his way, I ran after Rebecca.

--

I caught her in almost the same spot where she had revealed her "sprained ankle" trick to me. "Rebecca, stop. I'm sorry Logan said that stuff." She shook her head, looking down at the ground. "Just tell me the truth, okay?"

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before," she sniffed, huge tears rolling down her cheeks. I wiped them away and she blushed. "I was just scared of what you would think. Chase's mom and my mom work together. We started dating last summer and when it came time for Chase to come back to PCA, he asked me to come with him. I thought it would be great, but then I met Zoey. Chase talked about her _all_ the time and then she turned out to be gorgeous, and I was really jealous. So I told her to stay away from Chase. It wasn't a real threat; I didn't say I was going to kill her or anything like that." She took a deep breath.

"I believe you," I said. She nodded and smiled sadly.

"There's more. Chase and I got into a fight about Zoey. I was just so jealous of her, and really, who could blame me? Especially now! So, I told him if he wanted to be my boyfriend, he had to stop hanging out with Zoey." I stared at her. I was actually kind of impressed. I was coming to realize that one of the things I liked the most about her was her boldness.

"And?" I prompted. She shrugged.

"And he broke up with me. I mean, what did that say about their relationship? I was devastated. And I had to spend the rest of the semester at PCA even though I had only come here to be with Chase. So a few weeks later, I found this balloon that Zoey had put a secret in- for a class assignment," she added when I gave her a strange look. "They had to write down a really embarrassing secret, put it in a balloon, and let it go. But her balloon got stuck in a tree and I found it. I was still pretty upset and angry over the whole situation, so I used it anonymously to blackmail her into doing a bunch of embarrassing stuff. It wasn't anything dangerous, just stupid stuff like wearing a banana costume and dancing on the table at lunch time. But they found out it was me."

I shook my head. "Rebecca, I'm going to be honest with you. That does sound a little crazy." She nodded.

"I know! Don't you think I know that? I mean, really, I _was_ a little crazy. But I'm better now," she attempted to joke, and I smiled. "When I went home for Christmas, my mom told me I could come home for good, if I didn't want to stay at PCA. I thought about it a lot over the break and I decided that PCA is a good 

school and I did want to be here. So I came back. I haven't seen or talked to any of them since the balloon incident. I've just stayed away from them as much as I could."

"Until I came along." Things were beginning to make sense. Only now I was wondering, was I being used? Was she hoping Chase or Zoey would find out about us?

"Don't think like that," she said, grabbing my hand. "I know what you're thinking and that's not how it is." I wanted to believe her, but it was hard.

"Why did you lie to me? You knew all about my situation with Chase and Zoey, but you wouldn't tell me yours?"

"Dammit, James, I was scared. What was I supposed to say? 'Hi, my name is Rebecca and I have some really weird history with your ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend'? Do you really think you would have still talked to me after that? You would have questioned my motives from the start." I shrugged.

"I don't know, Rebecca. I'm questioning your motives now." She looked as though I had slapped her. "I'm sorry, but this is a lot to take in! How would you feel? I was honest with you from the start!"

"I don't know," she replied quietly. "I don't know how I would feel. Since I met you I've been standing on the edge of a cliff, waiting to jump off or be pushed off. I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't, and every time I saw you I was sure one of your friends had told you everything. And then when they didn't, I was so relieved that I just couldn't ruin it and tell you myself."

"I hadn't told any of my friends," I said. "I don't even know why. I guess I just wasn't ready to tell the guys and hear them tease me, and that's not exactly the sort of thing Zoey and I discuss."

"You- you didn't tell Zoey?" She asked, shocked. I shook my head.

"No. Why?" She shook her head, wringing her hands.

"Oh, I-uh, I just figured you would have."

I folded my arms. "Rebecca, you're lying and I know it. Please don't make this worse."

Sighing, she looked up at me, her eyes worried. "Because she knows. She found me on Friday morning and told me to stay away from you."

"What?" I demanded. She nodded.

"I didn't want to tell you. I mean, I understand where she's coming from and that she thinks she protecting you, so I just let it go. But I told her that I really liked you and that I wasn't going to leave you alone. And I sort of called her a hypocrite." She gave me a small smile and I couldn't help but smile back. "I think that made her mad."

"I can't believe she would do that, without even talking to me," I said, a bit angrily. "I have to go talk to her." Rebecca shook her head.

"James, please don't. Just let it go. I don't want to start anything." I pulled my arm away.

"No. She wants to be my friend but she can't be honest with me? Does no one at this stupid school know how to tell the truth?" Tears welled in her eyes, but I couldn't feel sorry for her, not anymore.

"James-" she said pleadingly, but I cut her off.

"No, Rebecca. I am so damn tired of being the last one to know." I turned and stalked off, leaving her standing there.


	7. Trading Spouses: Not Just For TV

**A/N:** You're really going to hate me after this one. I'm sorry. Just promise you won't stop reading!

Splinters

**Chapter Seven: Trading Spouses – Not Just For TV**

I found Zoey fairly quickly by walking in on her and Chase making out in our dorm. "Ugh!" I said, turning away. They quickly moved apart and Zoey straightened her shirt. "Put up a sign or something next time, okay?" Zoey looked at me like I had lost my mind.

"Seriously, James? You want us to put up a sign on the door warning you that we're in here making out?" By the end of her sentence, she was on her feet. I groaned.

"Gross, no. I just would like a little warning. This isn't exactly the most comfortable situation I've ever been in."

Zoey took a step forward, looking fairly aggressive. I'd seen that look on her face before, although it was always directed toward Logan. "And you think it's all peachy-keen for us?" She snapped. "It's not all about you, you know!" I was a little surprised by her outburst but recovered quickly.

"I never said it was all about me! This is awkward as hell, Zoey. I don't know if I can do this anymore." Chase stood up, stepping between us.

"Whoa, guys, let's calm down for a sec. James, you're not moving out, we'll just work this out however we have to." I shook my head.

"I'm not talking about moving out. I'm talking about us being friends." I pointed to myself and Zoey, whose eyes grew wide. "Between this and you lying to my face and then going behind my back, I'm just not sure I can do this."

"What are you talking about?" Chase demanded, predictably coming to Zoey's defense, but Zoey had turned pink and looked away mumbling, "I don't know what you mean."

"Yes, you do," I snapped, now angrier. "You know exactly what I mean. And you should have told me, instead of letting me find out from _Logan_ right in front of her. _Someone_ should have told me _something_!" She glared at me.

"_She_ should have told you!" She shot back. "But she's a liar. I knew she wouldn't come clean."

"Why didn't _you_ come clean?" I demanded. "Why didn't you tell me if you were so sure she wouldn't?" I shook my head. "You told her to stay away from me? Doesn't that sound just a little hypocritical, considering?" She glared at me, and Chase held up his hand.

"Whoa, now, wait a minute, James," he said. "That's different. Zoey was just looking out for you."

"No, if she had been looking out for me, she would have _told_ me! The fact is, you weren't one hundred percent sure, where you?" I asked her, pointing my finger in her face. She pushed it away. "You thought there might be a chance she was sincere, and so you stayed quiet." She folded her arms.

"Do you think she's sincere?" Chase asked Zoey, who didn't reply right away. She looked out of the window and then back, and addressed Chase.

"I don't know."

I sat down in the desk chair, my head in my hands. "I can't believe this. You should have heard some of the things I just said to her." I glared at Zoey. "Why didn't you just tell me the truth? Or you? Did you both know about the date? Is that why you were so pissed off when I got back?" I demanded of Chase. Zoey gave him a sharp look.

"Why were you pissed off, Chase?" She asked, her tone dangerous. He crossed his arms.

"Why didn't you tell him about it in the first place?" He shot back. "You waited until it was too late to tell me. I couldn't even warn him."

"You could have warned me after!" I interjected. "Both of you are at fault here."

"Hey, if you wouldn't have been so damn secretive about the whole thing, maybe we could have!" Chase snapped at me. As he did, Michael and Logan came running into the room with Lola and Quinn behind them.

"I had every right to not tell anyone about her," I shouted. "That's my private business and since you all were lying to me, I had no reason to believe it affected any of you!"

"James, calm down," Michael said, stepping in between Chase and I.

"I will _not_ calm down. This is bullshit, Michael, all of it! They kept something really important from me and now he's trying to put it on me, like it's _my_ fault?"

"You're right," Chase said quietly. "We should have told you. And I'm sorry." I stared at him. "Really, I am. I thought that Rebecca had told you everything and that's why you were being secretive, and it made me angry. But I should have told you." He held out his hand for a truce and after a brief hesitation, I shook it. Lola and Quinn relaxed visibly.

"I'm sorry, too," Logan said. "I came on pretty strong back there." I nodded and looked at Zoey, who shrugged.

"I'm sorry you're dating a psycho," she snapped. "I'm sorry you didn't feel like you could trust anyone with your new girlfriend."

"Whoa, Zoey," Lola said, taking her by the arm, but Zoey pulled away.

"Are you going to keep seeing her?" She demanded.

Everyone turned to look at me. Folding my arms, I faced off with Zoey. "I don't know." Her eyebrows shot up, and she put her hands on her hips.

"Then you're right. We can't be friends." Turning, she stomped out of the room. I watched her go with mild surprise.

"Great," Lola muttered, hurrying after Zoey. Quinn shot Logan an unreadable glance before following.

"Are you really?" Chase asked quietly. I shrugged.

"I don't know. I really like her. All of this is weird and crazy and I wish it hadn't happened, but I don't know if it changes how I feel about her. Maybe a little." He nodded.

"I guess I understand." Michael and Logan seemed to be standing on their toes, waiting for something to happen. "I'm not going to hit him!" Chase snapped at them, and they relaxed. "Geez." I couldn't help but smile.

"Seriously, I need to go talk to her." Chase sighed.

"I need to go find Zoey." He looked at me. "Sorry she freaked out on you like that. Rebecca is a pretty sore subject with her." He left the room. Michael and Logan looked at each other and then at me.

"Dude, I think you should give Rebecca a chance," Michael said. I stared at him. "Really. I know she screwed up before, but look at Vince. At least Rebecca never hit anyone. Maybe she's changed." Logan nodded.

"He's right." He paused. "Tell her I'm, uh, I'm sorry for calling her crazy." I smiled.

"I will. Thanks guys."

--

Taking a deep breath, I knocked on Rebecca's dorm door. One of her roommates answered it.

"What do _you_ want?" She demanded.

"I want to talk to Rebecca." She folded her arms.

"And what if she doesn't want to talk to you?"

I sighed. "Then I don't blame her. But I'm hoping that she'll accept my apology and hear me out." She pursed her lips before opening the door.

"Fine. But you say one word to upset her and-"

"Domi, just let him in." She did and I saw Rebecca sitting on their little sofa. "Now get out," she said to her roommates, who complied quickly.

"Can I sit down?" I asked quietly. She nodded and I did.

"I'm sorry-" we said at the same time. She giggled.

"I really am," I told her quickly, before she could interrupt. "I was mad at Zoey and I took it out on you."

"I'm sorry I wasn't honest," she replied. "I promise I won't keep anything else from you. That is, if you still want to be my friend." I was confused.

"Your friend?" I asked. She shrugged.

"I-uh, I figured it was wishful thinking to hope for more." I scooted closer to her.

"There's nothing wrong with wishing," I said, kissing her.

She smiled when I pulled away and whispered, "Especially when it comes true."

--

I returned to my dorm room a few hours later with a huge smile on my face. That smile fell when I saw Chase sitting on one of the bean bags, his eyes red. Michael and Logan were sitting on either side of him.

"Whoa, what's going on?" I asked. Chase glanced up at me.

"Zoey broke up with me."


	8. One More Mistake

**A/N: **Yeah so it has been FOREVER since I've updated. I'm a huge jerk and I'm sorry!! I got a little bit of writer's block and then I got reallyreally busy with work and classes and soccer and every other one of the million things I'm trying to do at once because I'm a closet masochist or something…

:: takes deep breath :: Anyway, excuses aside, I finally got some time to sit down and read over this, and I had kind of a breakthrough (FINALLY), so hopefully I can pick this back up and get it finished!

Thank you to everyone who reviewed and read, and sorry again for the long delay.

Splinters

**Chapter Eight: One More Mistake**

If I thought things were hard before, it was nothing compared to now. With Chase and Zoey broken up, and Zoey not speaking to me, things were pretty tense in our "Group". Logan and Quinn were having the hardest time because their relationship constantly put them in the middle of Chase and Zoey's drama.

Chase and I were fine, although it was still fairly awkward between us. I felt responsible for their break up even though he assured me that it was not my fault. He had yet to tell me the full story. He had alluded that Zoey was being irrational about Rebecca and that things had fallen apart when he had disagreed with her, but I had the feeling that wasn't the full story.

I mentioned this to Rebecca as we walked back from P.E. together a week after the "blowout", as we liked to refer to it.

She scrunched up her nose and looked thoughtful. "I don't know what it could be, though. I mean, it was pretty clear to me a year ago that Chase was head-over-heels in love with Zoey. And it became pretty clear when Zoey came back from England that she had some serious feelings for Chase." I gave her a pointed look, reminding her that this wasn't my favorite subject. "Sorry," she said quickly. I sighed, feeling tired.

"No, it's fine," I told her. "Really. It's about time I got over the whole 'getting dumped' thing. By now it's just my pride hurting." She smiled.

"I've got a pretty good idea of how that feels," she joked. "But honestly, from my standpoint, something big would have to go down to tear those two apart. And I just don't think that this situation is big enough." I nodded.

"I agree."

She stopped walking suddenly and turned to me. "You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to go talk to Zoey and apologize for everything; for being rude to her, and trying to break up their friendship, and the balloon incident, and even for calling her a hypocrite the other day. All of it."

I was wary. "Are you sure that's a good idea?" I asked. She smiled.

"I should have done it a long time ago. I think it would have saved everyone a lot of trouble. I'm just going to wave the white flag and apologize for everything under the sun and hope she doesn't let Quinn shoot me with that weird laser thing." I laughed.

"If that's what you want to do, I'm behind you. But I'm going to warn you that it may not turn out the way you want. She's still pretty pissed off." She nodded.

"Don't worry, I can handle myself."

--

I'll admit it, I worried. All afternoon while I tried to concentrate on my homework, I worried about Rebecca. What if her plan didn't work? What if it just made the situation worse?

"You all right?" Michael asked me, looking up from the TV. I nodded, pulling my earphones out of my ears and setting my book down.

"I'm going for a walk," I said. He shrugged and turned back to his show.

I walked around the campus for all of ten minutes before my route _accidentally_ took me past Zoey's dorm building. There were no police cars parked out front and I couldn't hear anyone screaming, so maybe that meant all was well. Or they'd killed each other and no one had found the bodies yet.

"James?" I turned to see Lola and Vince behind me. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," I replied quickly. Lola turned to Vince.

"Can I meet you later?" She asked him. He shrugged.

"Sure." They kissed quickly and he left. Knowing I was trapped, I sat down on a bench. She sat next to me.

"Okay, spill. What's going on?" I didn't want to tell her the truth, so I settled for a half-truth.

"I don't know. This whole thing is so messed up. I miss hanging out with you and Quinn. And Zoey," I added truthfully. Lola sighed.

"Look, I don't agree with her, but Zoey is my best friend and I have to be there for her right now. It doesn't mean I don't want to be your friend anymore or that I'm taking her side."

"I wished there didn't have to be sides."

"So do I," she replied. "But there are, and we can't change that, at least not right away. Give Zoey some time, she'll come around." I nodded.

"I feel like she thinks I'm doing this to spite her, you know, over our breakup."

Lola shook her head. "I don't think so. I think she just feels a little betrayed."

"Her?" I demanded. "With our history?"

"Come on, James. Chase was no one to you except some guy we all talked about. Rebecca is the closest thing Zoey has ever had to an enemy. Cut her some slack." I nodded slowly.

"All right, fine."

She smiled sadly. "Why don't you try talking to her? She's had some time to calm down and I'm sure you guys can come to some sort of truce."

I shook my head. "I don't know if that's such a good idea right now." She stood up, pulling on my arm.

"Come on, quit being a coward." Reluctantly I followed her.

Thankfully, when we entered the dorm room, Zoey was alone. Lola dragged me inside and picked up some random object from the dresser.

"Oh, _there's_ my, um… thing." Without another word, she left the room. Zoey stared at me. She didn't look angry, only confused, so I relaxed a bit.

"What was that?"

I shrugged. "Don't ask me. Erm, do you think we could talk?" I asked. She sighed.

"It feels like that's all I've been doing lately." Smiling weakly, she nodded at a chair and I sat. I was encouraged that she had yet to throw me out.

"Yeah, well, sometimes that's all you can do," I replied. She nodded but didn't speak. Feeling a little awkward, I shifted in my chair. "So, umm… listen, about Rebecca-"

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," she interjected. "I should have."

"Then why didn't you?" I asked. She shrugged.

"A lot of reasons. You looked happy with her that day I saw you and I didn't want to ruin it. I was afraid you wouldn't believe me. And I guess, weirdly, I was a little jealous."

"Jealous?" I was floored. "Why?" She stood suddenly and I jumped up, startled.

"I don't know! I just… when I saw you two together, I felt all sad, and then later when you said you were still going to see her and you didn't even seem to care that I was walking away, well, that hurt."

"You left me with an impossible choice, Zoey," I defended myself. "You were being unfair and I couldn't let you bully me into anything." She gave me a wounded look.

"I just wanted to know that our friendship was important to you."

"It is, Zoey. It is important to me. But that doesn't mean I'm going to dump Rebecca because you asked me to. That's not how it works."

"Chase did it," she said in a small voice.

"Chase was in love with you."

"And you're not?" She asked, and I threw my hands up in the air.

"What do you want from me, Zoey? I'm not Chase and I never will be. I would think you would have figured that out by now." I sighed. "You have to stop comparing me to everyone else. I'm not them. I'm James, and I do love you, Zoey. I do. I always will."

"That's not what I asked you," she said, a little more boldly. "I asked you if you were _in_ love with me." She had taken a step closer to me, and suddenly I felt trapped and nervous.

"Zoey, don't do this." She took another step. I knew I should back away, but I couldn't move. One more step put her so close that I could smell her soft, flowery perfume.

"You told me you loved me last year, and I turned you away," she whispered. I was frozen on the spot, powerless to resist her. "I think I may have made a mistake."

When her lips touched mine, several things happened at once. First, I found I could move again. Second, I realized that my gut reaction was not to wrap my arms around her or pull her closer, but to push her away.

The third thing that happened was the worst. An audible gasp echoed through the room. Both of our heads snapped toward the sound to see Rebecca standing in the open doorway, her eyes filling with tears. I had just enough time to die at her expression before she walked away.

"Rebecca!" I called. Zoey grabbed my arm.

"Are you really going to go after her?" She demanded. I yanked free of her grip.

"Yes. You want your answer? Well, here it is. I am not in love with you, Zoey Brooks. Especially not now." I left the room, trying not to be affected by the devastated look on her face.


	9. Essays and Coffee Rage

**A/N: **To make up for being a jerk, here's an extra chapter.

Splinters

**Chapter Nine: Essays and Coffee Rage**

"Rebecca, wait!" I grabbed her arm and forced her to stop walking. She yanked away and glared at me.

"Don't touch me!" She snapped, causing the other girls in the hall to stare at us. "Don't you _ever_ touch me again."

"Becca, it's not what it looks like-"

"Oh, no?" She shoved a piece of paper into my hands. I immediately recognized it as my college essay. "Now tell me it's not what it looks like," she growled.

"You weren't supposed to read this," I said quietly.

She shrugged. "Yeah, well I did. And I'm glad I did. I suppose it's better I find out now than later on, when it might really hurt." She barely choked out the last word before walking away. Bringing the paper up to my eyes, I read it, even though I already knew what it said.

_So the prompt for this essay is to describe an event that has a significant meaning to my life. That's a pretty generic question. To all intents and purposes, I could use the event of my birth. I would say that was pretty significant, but I'm guessing this means something I can consciously remember. This means something I'll never forget. That something is really someone. And that someone is Zoey Brooks._

_I met Zoey Brooks when I transferred to Pacific Coast Academy, a boarding school in California. I was a junior in high school, an honor student, a chess club geek. My parents decided that PCA would be a good place for me to lock in that one last assurance of a college acceptance. I was sure it would be perfectly awful. At first it was. My new roommates were rude and uninviting, at one point driving me to move to a single dorm. The classes were harder even than my previous school's honor classes, and I struggled to catch up with the curriculum. _

_Then, I met Zoey. She was a friend of my roommates. She was the first person to really make me feel welcome at PCA, like I belonged. She made me feel comfortable, and she was easy to talk to. She even talked some sense into my roommates, who eventually became my good friends. Although we didn't intend for it to happen, we fell for each other and began a relationship. _

_I consider it the best four months of my life. We never fought. We were always happy. Zoey is a passionate and driven person and she brought those qualities out in me. She taught me to reach for my desires. She made me believe that I am worthy and capable of great accomplishments._

_It wasn't long before I realized I was in love. I made the mistake of thinking that my feelings were reciprocated, but learned that they were not. I was no longer good enough for Zoey Brooks. All of the positive attributes that I had developed were for naught. What was the point? What had I learned from all of this?_

It ended there. I had yet to finish it; in fact, I hadn't worked on it much that week. _Why_ had she read it? How was I supposed to convince her now?

I slumped back to my dorm, needing to vent, but it was empty. I could feel the anger welling up inside of me and I turned and punched the wall, biting my lip. Ignoring my bruised and bloody knuckles, I collapsed onto my bed. I had been laying there for several minutes when Chase entered the room. He sat down next to me and took the paper from my limp left hand.

I sat up, glaring at him. I didn't want him to read it.

He didn't. Instead, he laid it on the bed and looked at me. I couldn't read his expression and wondered if maybe he was going to hit me.

"Do you still love Zoey?" He asked in a quiet voice. His question startled me a bit. Did he know about what had just happened?

I shook my head. "I love her as a friend and nothing more." He cocked his head to one side.

"Are you sure? What if she told you she loved you?" So he didn't know.

"I would tell her 'too little, too late'," I replied, my bitterness stinging the air. I picked up the essay and crushed it in my fist. "I don't love her anymore, Chase. That's it. There's nothing more to it." He nodded.

"Do you love Rebecca?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I like her a lot. But I've only know her for a month. That's not a very long time."

"I knew I loved Zoey the moment I first saw her," Chase replied. "I just looked at her and I knew she was special."

"I know Rebecca is special. I've thought so from the moment she tripped me and faked a sprained ankle to get us out of P.E."

He laughed. "She did that?" I nodded.

"Yeah, and then she talked me into buying her a smoothie." I grinned at the memory. "She's not afraid to go after what she wants, you know? I think that's what I like the most about her. She doesn't let anyone stand in her way."

"Yeah, she's a handful," Chase replied. "But you know, she and I were good friends before all of that happened, and I would like to be friends with her again." There was something about his expression that I didn't like. It was reminiscent, as if he was thinking of old memories of Rebecca, and I didn't want to think what those memories might be.

"Right. Well, somehow I don't think that would work out, considering how much Zoey hates her." Chase glanced at me and shrugged.

"Maybe it's time Zoey learned to let bygones be bygones," he said dismissively. "You know, Lola's boyfriend Vince beat the crap out of Michael, Logan, and me. Yet we got past it and we're friends with him now, because he's a different person. He knows he was wrong and he apologized. Maybe if Rebecca apologized to Zoey, it would help Zoey realize it's time to move on." I nearly laughed at the irony of it.

"Yeah, that won't be happening anytime soon," I told him. He stared at me.

"Why not? I mean, Rebecca is going to have to apologize eventually-"

I stood up, cutting him off. No way in hell was I going to tell him what had happened. Zoey could deal with that. "I need to get out of here," I said, trying not to sound rude but failing. "I'll see you later." I left the room, knowing he was staring out after me, bewildered.

I wandered around campus for about an hour, this time taking extra special care to stay far away from the girls' dorms. I rounded the basketball court, stopped at the coffee cart to buy a frappuccino, passed the movie theatre, and somehow ended up standing on the track where I had first seen Rebecca.

Without thinking, I plopped down on the red asphalt and stared at my hands, one holding the sweating frappuccino cup and the other still clenched around the balled up essay. Setting down my cup, I smoothed out the paper and looked down at my handwriting, reading back over the words, wondering what had possessed me to write them. Zoey hadn't taught me these things. All she had taught me was that I wasn't good enough for the likes of her. She had taught me that even to guys like Chase, I came in second.

I thought over this, but now Rebecca took Zoey's place. What if Chase decided he wanted her back? Would I be second to Chase for her, too? Did she still have feelings for Chase? Did I care?

I imagined them together for a moment. I imagined Chase's hands on Rebecca, his lips on her lips. I imagined her looking at him the way she looked at me. In my nightmare, she teased him the way she teased me, she put her arms around him, she stared into his eyes with that shining expression.

A rage like I had not felt since the day Zoey broke up with me flooded through my veins, and I grabbed my frappuccino cup, hurling it across the football field in the middle of the track. It hit somewhere near the end zone and burst, sending a shower of butterscotch colored liquid over the grass. A few people on the other side of the field gave me strange looks, but I ignored them.

I shook my head. Of course I cared. I cared very much. I cared much more about being second on Rebecca's list than Zoey's.

And then it hit me. What had I learned from Zoey? I had learned the bitterness of disappointment, the sting of defeat. And I learned the beauty of moving on.

Pulling a chewed up stick-pen from my shorts pocket, I began to write.


	10. Game Over

A/N: I'm so glad I still have readers! Thank you for not abandoning me during my time of difficulty! ;) It seems that since I overcame my block, I can't put this story down, so to speak. I've been writing like crazy on it the past several days and I like where it's going. I hope y'all do too!

Picking Up

Chapter Ten: Game Over

"I can't believe they would do that!" The whispers and stares that followed me back to my dorm made me nervous. Some of the guys looked angry, some jealous, some impressed. Every girl looked ready to throttle me.

"James!" I heard Quinn's voice as my hand touched the door to my building. I turned to face her and she grabbed my arm. "Do not go in there," she advised in a low voice, her eyes demanding that I take her seriously. Wondering why the entire school seemed to be standing outside the building watching us, and if maybe she had left off a poisonous gas on accident, I pulled my arm gently from her vice-like grip.

"Why not?" I asked, rubbing the skin where her nails had pierced it. She glanced over my shoulder and her eyes went wide. "What?" I demanded.

Before she could answer, before I could turn around, something hard hit the back of my head. Some of the watching crowd cheered. I stumbled forward into Quinn, who helped me regain my balance before ducking out of the way.

I spun around, but not quickly enough to see Chase's fist before it connected with my face. Staggering from the blow, I took several steps backward, clutching my bleeding lip.

"I trusted you, dammit!" He shouted. "I was nice to you! I didn't have to be, you know! I could have been an ass and no one would have thought less of me. I had every right to hate you, but I had to go and be Mr. Nice Guy!" He swung again and I ducked this time, blocking his arm so that I pushed him sideways, far enough away from me that I could recover a little before he came at me again.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I demanded. Surely he didn't think I had wanted Zoey to kiss me?

My comment seemed to make him angrier than ever. I had never seen calm, mellow, goofy Chase like this before. "Are you kidding me?" He roared. "Are you effing kidding me? Don't you dare stand there and act like you don't know!"

"I didn't do anything wrong!" I shouted back. "I don't know what you think happened, but I didn't do a damn thing wrong!"

Without warning, he swung again, and I barely got my arm up to block him in time. I pushed him back away from me, but I didn't hit him.

"What are you doing?" I heard Zoey's voice through the cheering crowd. "Chase, stop it!"

"You stay out of this!" He shouted. He made another swipe at me and I pushed him away again. He hit the ground, his rage making him incomprehensible.

"Fight back, dammit!" He spat out. "We should have done this weeks ago!" I stared down at him, wondering if there was anything I could say to calm him down, or if I should just let him hit me until his anger abated.

I shook my head, and he sprang to his feet, charging at me like a bull. He tackled me and we hit the ground, but I was bigger and I easily flipped him over and pinned him to the ground. He put up his hands to shield his face, but I simply got off of him and stood up. I reached out a hand to help him up, but he shoved it away.

"Fight back!" He was on his feet again, his face inches from me. I shook my head again. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Rebecca standing on the edge of the circle.

"No," I said firmly

"Coward!" He shouted. I took the insult. "Go ahead, try to hit me!" He took a step forward and swung again, but I blocked it.

"No!" I snapped. "I'm not going to hit you!"

"Chase!" Michael and Logan showed up, shoving their way through the crowd, past Zoey and Rebecca, who didn't seem to realize they stood inches away from each other, with similar horrorstruck expressions.

"Chase, stop it!" Michael grabbed Chase by his shoulders, pulling him away from me. "What has gotten into you?" Logan put one hand on my arm, but when I looked at him, he seemed to realize I didn't need restraint and let go. I wiped blood from my mouth where Chase had first hit me.

"I'm not giving up without a fight!" Chase snapped at Michael, tears in his eyes. "Why won't you fight back?"

"Because I'm giving up," I said calmly. "Without a fight." A murmur rippled through the watching crowd. I couldn't see Zoey or Rebecca clearly, but I didn't take my eyes from Chase's face.

His body sagged against Michael's grip, but his gaze locked with mine. "Why?" He demanded weakly.

"Because I don't want her," I said simply. "And she doesn't want me." At this point, I did look at Zoey, whose eyes were bright. "She doesn't," I said, more to Zoey than Chase.

"How do you know?" Chase's eyes searched my face for signs of deceit.

"Because she loves you. She's always loved you. You win Chase. You win, because I don't want to play anymore." I couldn't meet Rebecca's eye. I saw Quinn place her arm on Zoey's shoulders. I looked once more at Chase, and then I walked away.

Halfway across campus, my aching jaw and bruised body felt suddenly weary, and I collapsed on a bench. After a few minutes, a dark-haired girl joined me, taking out a wet rag and dabbing my lip with it.

"He sure got you good," Lola said quietly. I nodded.

"What the hell happened?" I asked.

"I'm not really sure," she replied. "Quinn and I were in our dorm when Logan and Michael burst in, yelling that Chase was going to kill you and that we needed to find you before he did. We had no idea where to find you, so we all went in different directions. I guess Quinn found you first."

"And Chase."

She nodded sadly, wiping the last of the blood from my chin. "I'm sorry," she said softly.

"It's not your fault," I replied gruffly.

"I know," she said, folding the towel so that the bloodstain was hidden and folding it in her hands. "But I can still be sorry about it."

"If this is anyone's fault, it's mine," Michael said, sitting on my other side. "I shouldn't have forced everyone together like I did. It was too soon." He looked like he might cry. "It's just that you're awesome, and Chase is awesome, and I wanted you guys to see how awesome you are and then everyone could be friends. But I should have realized that this is the real world and not whatever fantasy land I've been living in, thinking everyone was getting along just fine."

I shook my head. "This is not your fault, Michael," I assured him. "This is my fault and Chase's fault and Zoey's fault, but it is not yours."

"And honestly," Lola interjected, "I think this was bound to happen. Not to this extreme, but there had to be some kind of blow out between you and Chase. You were both just going along, harboring all this resentment and being polite, and someone was bound to explode."

"I just wish his fist hadn't exploded on your face," Michael muttered.

"He sure went ballistic," Lola mused. "I've never seen Chase like that."

"Me neither," I agreed, "but I haven't known him for very long."

"I have," Michael said softly. "It's just… Zoey makes Chase a little crazy. He's always been so obsessed with her, from the first time he met her. He tried to give Logan the flu so he wouldn't be able to go onstage and kiss Zoey in a play. He broke up with Rebecca, pretty brutally, for Zoey. And you should have seen him go after Logan, just for ripping a stuffed animal Zoey gave to him. He broke our keyboard."

"Logan did?"

"No, Chase did. With Logan's body."

"Wow," was all I could say. Michael nodded.

"Chase is my best friend, and I love the guy to death, but sometimes I wonder if his obsession with Zoey is a little unhealthy, especially when it looked like she wasn't going to reciprocate." He sighed. "I think maybe it's better that they take some time apart."

"Did you really kiss Zoey?" Lola asked. I shook my head mutinously.

"She kissed me."

"Did you let her?" She asked more meaningfully. I hung my head.

"For about half a second," I admitted. "It was like my brain stopped working, and then when I came to my senses, it was too late. Rebecca saw and…" I trailed off, unable to finish and knowing it was unnecessary.

"Did you mean it when you said you didn't want her?" Lola continued. I nodded vigorously.

"I'll always love Zoey," I told her. "She's the first girl I ever loved and that's never going to go away. But I'm not in love with her anymore. If you had asked me a month ago, I might have said differently, but something… changed."

"You changed," Michael said. "You realized that Zoey wasn't the end all be all, and that there's a life out there without her, waiting for you." He patted my shoulder. "I've got to go check on Chase."

"Is he going to hate me now?" I asked, feeling defeated by fate and circumstances. Michael shrugged.

"Chase isn't the type to hold a grudge, so I would say no. But I would also say you should ask him that yourself."

"Not until I can be sure he won't hit me again," I muttered, and Lola smiled wryly. Michael shook his head and walked away.


	11. In Hiding

**A/N: **Yay for reviews! So here's another update.

Re: the fight – that was really hard to write, so I'm glad you all liked it. I actually wrote two different versions and then combined them. It was so hard to write Chase that way. I just had to keep picturing that moment in "Goodbye Zoey" where he attacked Logan. And James is a pretty easy-going guy, too, so I had trouble with making him so sarcastic, but I guess it worked out okay! :)

Anyway, this is more of a filler / moving chapter, but it was necessary. And it was fun to write. I love writing Logan. :)

Picking Up

**Chapter Eleven: In Hiding**

For the next week, I tried to talk to Rebecca several times a day, but she avoided me like the plague. The public exhibition over Zoey remained the talk of the campus, and I had a feeling Rebecca was embarrassed; embarrassed that her supposed boyfriend had been fighting over another girl. Although that hadn't really been the case, that was the rumor, and you can't change the major plot points of a rumor once it gets underway.

After two weeks, I refrained from approaching Rebecca except in PE class, but that still got me nowhere.

"She's never going to speak to me again," I moaned, putting my pillow over my face. It was Friday evening, and all four of us were stuck in our dorm. We hadn't had much contact with the girls for the past couple of weeks, excluding Logan and Quinn, of course. For the most part they kept to their dorm and we kept to ours.

Michael made a small noise of interest, Chase said nothing, but Logan jumped down from the bed above me and yanked the pillow away. Since the fight, Chase and Logan had switched beds to put as much distance between Chase and me as possible. It still wasn't enough, considering we were still sharing a room and the atmosphere between us remained tense, but we were as cordial as we could be for Logan and Michael's sake.

After the fight, I had approached Chase to talk with him, but all I had gotten was an, "I'm sorry about your lip," and then the cold shoulder. Thankfully no teachers had gotten involved, so we had escaped discipline. Somehow they must have found out, though, because they all glared at us every time we entered a classroom, and our History teacher had moved us across the room from one another.

"Dude, you're going to have to convince her that you mean it first," Logan said in an annoyingly superior voice, holding my pillow out of my reach. "And stop being so freaking dramatic about the whole thing."

"What do you think I've been trying to do?" I demanded. "And I'm not being dramatic!"

"Yes you are," he replied. "And you have to convince her that you mean it _before _you try to talk to her."

"That doesn't make any sense," Michael interjected, looking up from his homework.

"Yeah," I agreed. "How am I supposed to convince her without talking to her?" Logan rolled his eyes.

"Look, she's not going to believe a word you say right now," he told me. "You're just a jerk and a liar to her. So you only have two options: you get someone she trusts to plead your case-"

"No one she trusts will give me the time of day, either."

"Or," he went on as though I had not interrupted, "you show her. Prove it to her in a way that she absolutely cannot doubt you."

"Logan would know," Chase muttered, not taking his eyes from the TV. Logan glared at him.

"Shut up," he snapped. He turned to me. "You know I'm right. She's not going to believe you unless you make her believe you."

"So what the heck am I supposed to do?" I asked. "Threaten to jump off a building?" Chase snorted.

"Yeah, if you want her to think you're suicidal and psychotic," he replied, smirking. I glared at him.

"That would be a little crazy," Michael broke in, looking anxiously between us.

"You don't have to threaten suicide to get her attention," Logan scoffed. "Make it something big, but something good, too."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, because that helps so much," I told him sarcastically.

"You know her better than I do," he shot back. "Think of something."

As annoyed as I felt at his lack of ideas, I knew he was right. "I'll think of something," I replied, collapsing back onto my bed. He nodded.

"Good, 'cause I'm tired of listening to you whine about I," he said before climbing back up to his bunk. I made a swipe at his leg but he was too quick for me.

"And I'm tired of sitting in this stupid dorm every night," Chase mumbled. "This has been the most boring two weeks of my life."

"So go outside," Logan offered, but we all knew what the answer would be. Chase had been complaining all week about being stuck in the room, but he was keeping himself there. Mostly we figured he didn't want to face everyone after what had happened, but I also thought he might be a little worried about running into either Zoey or Rebecca on accident. Zoey, from what Lola told me, didn't leave her room much either, and I knew Rebecca was avoiding the spotlight as much as she was avoiding me, so I didn't think he had much chance of seeing either, but he couldn't know that.

I had kept to the room as much as possible, too, mostly because everywhere I went someone either high-fived me and congratulated me on "winning" the fight that they obviously had not seen and had only heard about, or some girl tried to tell me exactly what she thought of me and my "cheating ways", or some guy tried to beat me up because "Chase is a cool guy" and they thought I deserved it.

I wondered if this would ever blow over. Lola had said it would the day before, when we had managed to talk to each other for a few minutes between classes. I did not have her optimism.

"Nah, I don't feel like going anywhere." Michael and I exchanged a look but said nothing.

Logan, on the other hand, seemed finally fed up with it. "Look, if you're bored, get out of here. Quit hiding and just deal with it." Chase ignored him. "I'm serious. The longer you hide, the longer it's going to drag on."

"I'm not hiding," Chase replied in a low voice.

"Yes you are," Logan shot back scornfully. "Both of you are." I couldn't see him, but I knew he was referring to me now.

"I wasn't complaining!" I defended myself. "I would much rather be stuck in here than out there trying not to get my ass kicked or chewed."

For the first time in fourteen days, Chase looked directly at me; not with a smirk or a glare, but an open, honest look. "What are you talking about?" He asked. I looked away.

"Nothing." I hadn't realized that Chase was unaware of my current unpopularity.

Michael sat up, an odd look on his face. "What _are_ you talking about?" He echoed Chase. I stared angrily at him. He knew damn well what I was talking about; he just wanted me to admit it to Chase.

"I'm talking about how eighty percent of this school now hates my guts," I shot angrily at Michael. If they were going to make me say it, then I was going to say it all. "How I can't go anywhere on this campus without some jerk trying to break me in half because he thinks I deserve it, or some girl trying to tell me that I'm a jerk and Rebecca deserves better. And how the twenty percent that don't hate me are all idiots who seem to think I deserve to be worshipped for supposedly being a jackass."

Chase, Michael, and Logan all stared at me. "What?" I demanded.

"I had no idea," Chase said quietly.

"Yeah, well, you wouldn't would you?" I snapped, suddenly angry at him, too. "You're always hiding in here."

"I'm not hiding!" Chase yelled. "I'm just…"

"Hiding," Logan finished.

"No!"

"Hiding," Michael agreed.

"Thanks a lot," Chase replied dryly. Michael shrugged.

"It's the truth man. I'm sorry, but you've got to face it." Chase merely scowled at him.

I rolled my eyes. "Look, if you're going to hide, that's cool. I understand; I'm hiding. But just freaking admit it."

He turned his angry look on me. "I'm. Not. Hiding."

"Fine," Logan said smugly. "Go outside then." Chase shot to his feet, walked to the door, and threw it open. He stepped into the hallway and stood there.

"See?"

Logan laughed sardonically. "Seriously? That's the best you can do?" Rolling his eyes, Chase marched off down the hallway. Logan jumped down from his bed to follow.

I looked at Michael, who shrugged, and we followed them.

Chase marched all the way down the hall into the lounge, where he stopped and stood in the middle of room. A few people stared at him strangely.

"So what," Logan said. "You're still not outside." Grumbling under his breath, Chase stomped across the room. We followed.

He reached the door, grabbed the handle, and flung it open.

"Hi," Zoey said in a small voice.


End file.
